Category Archives: pizza recipes

Well, winter finally came to Chicago this year…and didn’t take any prisoners. With snow, ice, wind, and rain, the commute from work on Friday night was a fiasco for everyone, no matter where they were going. So needless to say my kitchen got quite the workout this weekend!

While I love a good soup and sandwich night, sometimes there’s just nothing like pizza and beer…and with the insane traffic I had to endure on my way home from work, that was just the thing to cheer me up! And I’m not talking those crappy frozen pizzas…I mean delicious and hearty handmade rustic pizza!

This rustic pizza was kind of our own invention…with random stuff we had in the fridge. The dough is easy to make and doesn’t require a long rise, so it’s great for nights when you don’t really want to wait to eat. But I will say that the dough is very soft (we learned this in a very unfortunate way), so it might be wise to place the dough on your cooking stone or pan before you start adding your toppings.

Rustic Pizza:

Ingredients:

For Crust:

1 package of yeast

1 cup warm water

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons oil

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

Toppings:

1 cup BBQ sauce

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and diced

1/2 red onion, chopped into small pieces

1 1/2 to 2 cups Mozzarella cheese

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

2. Dissolve yeast in the warm water. Once dissolved, add flour, oil, sugar, and salt. Mix until everything is combined and dough begins to form. Let it rest for about 5 minutes.

3. Spread dough onto greased pan.

4. Spread BBQ sauce on dough and top with chicken, onion, and cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes.

Every Monday is a “Reci-bee” post, where I share my favorite recipes, recipe collections, and cooking and baking hints and tips.

Like this:

Any true Chicagoan will tell you…there’s nothing like diving into a deep dish pizza. It’s jam packed with carby, cheesy, goodness that’s just as good as healing the soul as chicken soup.

As if cleaning my apartment wasn’t enough of a task this weekend, I decided to make my very first deep dish pizza…we’re talking hand made crust, too. It was actually much easier than I thought it would be…and was the perfect end to an exhausting weekend!

deep dish!

TRADITIONAL CHICAGO DEEP DISH PIZZA

Crust:

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspooons salt

1 egg

4-4 1/2 cups all purpose flour

In the bowl of your standard mixer, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Add oil, sugar, salt, and 1 cup of flour. Mix until combined. Add egg and 1 cup of flour. Mix until combined. Add remaining flour until dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Dump dough out on a clean floured surface and knead the dough until smooth, about 8-10 minutes (place the heal of your hand in the middle of the dough ball and push out and away from you. Turn the dough and repeat).

Place dough in a clean bowl and cover with a light towel. Allow to sit for at least 1 1/2 hours, or until dough has doubled in size.

Dream about your delicious pizza.

Mmmm….

Sauce:

1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes

1 tiny can of tomato paste (I think it’s a 6 oz can)

Mix together and set aside. Add oregano to taste if you’d like.

Cheese:

1-2 8 oz. blocks of white mozzarella cheese

Slice cheese into small squares. Use as much or as little cheese as you’d like. To keep it traditional, use enough to cover the entire pie…and then some 😉

Toppings:

I used 1 lb. ground Italian sausage…but you can use whatever you’d like. I precooked the sausage before adding it to the pizza…a step I recommend.

ASSEMBLY:

Spray deep dish pan or 2 9″ round pans with non stick cooking spray. Once your dough is ready, roll it out to fit either a deep dish pie pan or 2 9″ round pans. Make sure dough goes up the sides of the pan as well. Add toppings, followed by cheese, and then the sauce. Bake in a 425 degree oven until crust is brown, about 30-40 minutes.

Let the pizza rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.

ENJOY!

mmm…

Every Monday is a “Reci-bee” post, where I share my favorite recipes, recipe collections, and cooking and baking hints and tips.